No matter how big or complex your travel problem is, Christopher Elliott knows how to solve it. A consumer advocate and travel journalist, Christopher has been helping people troubleshoot their travel problems for decades. He joins this episode of the podcast to talk about common travel problems people face and how to solve them. He also shares his perspective on when to issue refunds, the importance of travel insurance, how to advocate for yourself during travel and more.

Plus, we have have news about a brand new European river cruise line; a Road Tip about keeping your money safe when you travel; and a Hot Minute about gala events at travel trade shows.

To learn more about Christopher Elliott’s advocacy work, visit elliott.org.

To sign up for Christopher Elliott’s newsletter, visit elliottconfidential.com.

To learn more about Riverside Cruises’ plans for 2023, visit riverside-cruises.com.

To get announcements about our 2023 OnSite FAM opportunities, visit grouptravelleader.com/subscribe.

0:52 — New European river cruise line

2:34 — Road Tip: Keeping money safe when you travel

9:04 — How Christopher Elliott became a consumer advocate

12:30 — Why airline customer service can be so bad

17:35 — America’s most common travel complaints

21:46 — When should you issue a refund?

24:49 — The importance of travel insurance

27:06 — America’s most common travel mistakes

32:32 —Advocating for yourself on the road

42:40 — Hot Minute: Is it time for the tradeshow gala to die?

Gather and Go with Brian Jewell is a podcast that helps listeners, plan, promote and lead better trips. Its audience includes tour operators, travel agents, affinity group travel planners, destination marketers and other tourism professionals around the country. Each episode includes a featured conversation with a thought leader from around the tourism industry, as well as travel news, road tips and more. New episodes are released twice monthly.

You can find Gather and Go wherever your listen to podcasts or subscribe by email.

Have questions, comments or ideas for the show? Send them to us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening!